Skip to main content

Complicity in crime 'parallels' Nazi Germany, authorities silent on Haridwar hate speech

By Our Representative
More than 270 concerned citizens and organisations, condemning the recent incidents of hate speech and call for genocide against Muslims in Haridwar between December 17 and 19, 2021, have sought "strict action" against the perpetrators. In an open letter, they said, "The parallels with what happened in Nazi Germany are chilling: to remain silent or inactive in the face of such abominable speeches is to be complicit in crimes against humanity."
The signatories include Admiral L Ramdas (former Chief of Naval Staff), Aruna Roy IAS (resigned), linguist Dr Ganesh Devy (President, Rashtra Seva Dal), Githa Hariharan (writer), Deb Mukharji, IFS (retd), Justice (retd) AP Shah (former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court), Julio Ribeiro IPS (retd) (former adviser to Governor of Punjab), TM Krishna (musician), SG Vasudev (artist), Bela Bhatia (human rights lawyer), Maya Krishna Rao (theatre artist), and Nandita Das (film-maker and actor).
The organisations which signed the letter include Indian Cultural Forum, Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan and Constitutional Conduct Group (consisting of former civil servants).
Warning that "we will not remain silent when we hear hate speech", the open letter said, the call to kill a community "were made by Hindutva-oriented organizations and individuals, signifying their "outrageous behaviour" in "complete violation of law and the Indian Constitution."
"Instead of taking immediate and exemplary action against the perpetrators, public authorities have reacted in a tepid manner and are seeking to whitewash these events", letter regretted, recalling, 76 Supreme Court lawyers have written to the Chief Justice of India, asking him to take suo moto cognizance of the matter and requesting him to “issue directions for taking action against the guilty persons under Sections 120 B, 121 A, 124 A,153 A, 153 B, 295 A and 298 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.”
"In similar vein, we request the public authorities in Delhi and Uttarakhand to take action as per law. Otherwise, the idea of India as a constitutional democracy with fundamental rights and secularism as part of the basic structure of the Constitution will no longer have any meaning and India as we know it may cease to exist", it added.

Comments

TRENDING

Right-arm fast bowler who helped West Indies shape arguably greatest Test team in cricket history

By Harsh Thakor*  Malcolm Marshall redefined what it meant to be a right-arm fast bowler, challenging the traditional laws of biomechanics with his unique skill. As we remember his 25th death anniversary on November 4th, we reflect on the legacy he left behind after his untimely death from colon cancer. For a significant part of his career, Marshall was considered one of the fastest and most formidable bowlers in the world, helping to shape the West Indies into arguably the greatest Test team in cricket history.

Andhra team joins Gandhians to protest against 'bulldozer action' in Varanasi

By Rosamma Thomas*  November 1 marked the 52nd day of the 100-day relay fast at the satyagraha site of Rajghat in Varanasi, seeking the restoration of the 12 acres of land to the Sarva Seva Sangh, the Gandhian organization that was evicted from the banks of the river. Twelve buildings were demolished as the site was abruptly taken over by the government after “bulldozer” action in August 2023, even as the matter was pending in court.  

Outreach programme in medical education: Band-aids for compound fractures

By Amitav Banerjee, MD*  Recently, the National Medical Commission (NMC) of India, introduced two curricular changes in medical education, both at the undergraduate and the postgraduate levels, ostensibly to offer opportunities for quality medical education and to improve health care accessibility among the underserved rural and urban population.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah  The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Will Left victory in Sri Lanka deliver economic sovereignty plan, go beyond 'tired' IMF agenda?

By Atul Chandra, Vijay Prashad*  On September 22, 2024, the Sri Lankan election authority announced that Anura Kumara Dissanayake of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) alliance won the presidential election. Dissanayake, who has been the leader of the left-wing JVP since 2014, defeated 37 other candidates, including the incumbent president Ranil Wickremesinghe of the United National Party (UNP) and his closest challenger Sajith Premadasa of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya. 

Will Bangladesh go Egypt way, where military ruler is in power for a decade?

By Vijay Prashad*  The day after former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina left Dhaka, I was on the phone with a friend who had spent some time on the streets that day. He told me about the atmosphere in Dhaka, how people with little previous political experience had joined in the large protests alongside the students—who seemed to be leading the agitation. I asked him about the political infrastructure of the students and about their political orientation. He said that the protests seemed well-organized and that the students had escalated their demands from an end to certain quotas for government jobs to an end to the government of Sheikh Hasina. Even hours before she left the country, it did not seem that this would be the outcome.

Are Kashmir's porous borders turning region into 'convenient entry point' for drugs flowing into India?

By Raqif Makhdoomi*  Drug addiction has become a serious problem, affecting not only Kashmir but communities worldwide. In the shadowy world of drug trafficking, vast networks and powerful organizations play pivotal roles. These criminal enterprises, often bolstered by influential backers, operate with impunity, profiting from human suffering. For those able to evade law enforcement, drug trafficking can lead to staggering wealth; even at a local level, small-time peddlers can earn substantial sums. Despite international efforts to curb this menace, the drug syndicate is highly complex, eluding even the most determined governmental crackdowns due to its global reach and the powerful networks that support it.

How Hindu festivals are being 'misused' to incite violence and hatred

By Ram Puniyani*  Communal violence has long plagued Indian society, intensifying over the past decades. In pre-colonial times, such conflicts were rare and mostly ethnic, but under British rule, communal violence took root as a more frequent occurrence. The British promoted a divisive view of history, interpreting events through the religious identities of rulers, which fueled the rise of communal ideologies in both Hindu and Muslim communities. These narratives fostered a "social common sense" that exploited religion to incite conflict. Over the last 30 years, scholars, journalists, and researchers have worked to understand how communal groups have found new ways to instigate violence, particularly targeting the majority Hindu community.